Types of Stents find out more about stents

What is Stent?

A stent is a tiny wire mesh tube. It props open an artery and is left there permanently. When a coronary artery (an artery feeding the heart muscle) is narrowed by a buildup of fatty deposits called plaque, it can reduce blood flow. If blood flow is reduced to the heart muscle, chest pain can result. If a clot forms and completely blocks the blood flow to part of the heart muscle, a heart attack results.

Stents help keep coronary arteries open and reduce the chance of a heart attack.

How are stents used?

When a stent is used, it’s collapsed and put over the balloon catheter. It’s then moved into the area of the blockage. When the balloon is inflated, the stent expands, locks in place and forms a scaffold. This holds the artery open. The stent stays in the artery permanently and holds it open. This improves blood flow to the heart muscle and relieves symptoms (usually chest pain). Stenting has become fairly common. Most angioplasty procedures are done using stents.

What are the advantages of using a stent?

In certain patients, stents reduce the renarrowing that sometimes occurs after balloon angioplasty or other procedures that use catheters. Patients who have angioplasty and stents recover from these procedures much faster than patients who have coronary artery bypass surgery (CABG). They have much less discomfort, too.